Three separate Detroit residents shoot intruders in one week, two killed

A cluster of armed defenses from intruders in Detroit has given ammunition to the police chief’s support for an armed populace as a way to combat crime.

Earlier this week, a woman fired shots from a rifle as three teenagers tried to break into her house. None were hurt. Two face weapons and home invasion charges.

Saturday morning, a Detroit woman shot and killed a man with a gun who appeared from nowhere in her garage. Later that day, a homeowner shot two men breaking into a home in southwest Detroit, reported WXYZ. The men, armed with a tire iron, tried to knock out the homeowner, but the homeowner fired back with his gun, killing one while the other ran away.

The incidents — which are relatively rare — come a month after Detroit Police Chief James Craig made national headlines after publicly reversing his position on private ownership of handguns, telling The Detroit News that armed citizens could dissuade criminals from attacking them. Craig’s position is also relatively rare among urban police chiefs, who tend to press for handgun restrictions.